Device for moistening and sealing envelops



(No Model.)

A. W. EDDY. DEVICE FOR MOISTENING AND SEALING ENVELO-PS, &o. No;574,892.

Patented Jan. 12,1897;

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- casing, as is fully shown in Fig. 1.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ASAHEL w. EDDY, or OOLERIDGE, NEBRASKA.

DEVICE FOR MOISTENING AND SEALING ENVELOPS, 84C.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 574,892, dated January12, 1897.

A li ation fil d April 21, 1896. Serial No. 588,466. (No model) To allwhom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ASAHEL 1V. EDDY, of Coleridge, in the county ofCedar and State of Nebraska, have invented a new and Improved Device forMoistening and Sealing Envelops and Similar Packages, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object of the invention is to provide a machine in which an envelopcontaining a letter or other matter may be introduced into the machineand the gummed flap evenly moistened and sealed down upon the body ofthe envelop, the envelop leaving the machine in condition for mailingafter stamping the same.

A further object of the invention is to construct a machine of thischaracter which will be exceedingly simple, durable, and economic.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of theseveral parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed outin the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in both the figures.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section through the entire machine;and Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine, a portion of the top beingbroken away.

In carrying out the invention a casing A is employed and ordinarily thefront upper portion thereof is inclined, as shown in Fig. 1, and at theback of the casing a door 10 is provided, as is likewise a second door11, located in the front portion, preferably at the inclined section ofthe same, in order that the interior of the casing may be fully exposedwhen necessary. A downwardly and forwardly inclined partition 12 islocated within the aforesaid casing, and preferably a space is made tointervene the front and the rear ends of the said partition and theadjacent walls of the A guidestrip 13 is preferably adj ustably placedon the partition 12 near its upper end, and the said guide-strip usuallyoccupies a diagonal position on the aforesaid partition, as illustratedin Fig. 2, the rear portion of the strip 13 being more or less convexed,as shown in Fig. 1.

In one side of the casing, usually near the top, an opening 11 is made,and a table 15 is located horizontally on the exterior of the easingnear one end of the said opening, the top of the table being usually soplaced as to be in alinement with a point between the top and the bottomof the aforesaid opening, and at one side of this table an angularflangeor guard 16. is adj ustably secured to the exterior of the casing, whichis made to diverge from the table 15, and in the space intervening theinner end of the guard 16, which is perpendicularly placed, and thetable 15 a vertical slot 17 is made in the aforesaid casing, connectingwith the end opening 1%.

Ahorizontal shaft 18 is j ournaled in the end walls of the opening 14,and on this shaft a roller 19 is firmly secured, and this roller is madeto engage with a lower roller 20, preferably of less length than theupper roller, and the lower roller 20 is mounted to revolve in afiuid-receiving receptacle 21, adapted to contain water in suchquantities that the roller 20 as it revolves will be moistened. Theshaft 18 extends out beyond the periphery of the easing, as doeslikewise the shaft upon which the roller 20 is secured, and'the shaft ofthe roller 19 at its outer end has a gear22 secured to it,

which meshes with a gear 23 on the outer end of the shaft of themoistening-roller 20, and the shaft of the moistening-roller 20 ispreferably provided with a crank 24, by means of which it is revolved,and consequently the upper roller 19 is also revolved.

A vertical roller 25 is located at one side of the vertical slot 17, thesaid roller being contained within the casing and at one end of thepartition 12, near its upper end, while a second parallel roller 26 islocated at the opposite side of the said vertical slot 17, the shaft 27of this latter roller being carried downward a predetermined distancebelow the partition and preferably to the upper portion of the casing.The upper end portion of the partition 12 likewise crosses this secondroller 26. These two rollers are adapted for feeding the envelop intothe casing.

At the upper end of the shaft 27 a gear 28, preferably a beveled gear,is secured, which meshes with a similar gear 29, secured on the upperhorizontal roller-shaft 18, and at or near the lower ends of the twovertical rollers 25 and 2G gears 30 and 31 are secured to their shafts,the said gears being in mesh, so that when the upper rollers 19 and 20are set in motion the vertical rollers 25 and 20 will also be turned.

A horizontal shaft 34 is journalcd in suitable bearings below theinclined partition 12, and this shaft is provided at one end with asmall mitengear 33, meshing with a similar gear 32, secured to theperpendicular rollershaft 27, and at the forward end of the shaft 34 asecond miter-gear 35 is secured, which meshes with a corresponding gear36, secured to a shaft 37, journaled horizontally in the casing at apoint immediately below the lower end of the inclined partition 12, thesaid lower end of this partition being inclined or beveled so that theupper face of the partition will be practically flush with the upperportion of the periphery of the roller 38, secured on the aforesaidshaft 37, and immediately above and in front of the roller 38 and inclose proximity thereto a second roller 39 is secured upon the shaft a0,the shaft being also journaled in suitable bearings in the casing. Theshaft 37 at its outer end has a gear 41 secured thereto, which mesheswith a gear 42, secured upon the same end of the upper horizontal roller39.

A downwardly-inclined chute 43 is located below the lower roller 38 ofthe lower horizontal set, and the said chute 1L3 extends outwardlythrough an opening 44, made in the front lower portion of the casing, asillustrated in Fig. 1.

In operation the body of the envelop is introduced into the casingthrough the slot 17, so that it will be engaged by both of theperpendicular rollers 25 and 26, and the flap of the envelop containingthe gummed surface will be passed between the upper horizontal rollers19 and 20, the gummed surface of the flap being in engagement with themoistening-roller 20. By turning the crank-arm 2i the envelop is fedinto the casing, the gummed surface of the flap being evenly moistenedwhile the inward feed is carried on. As the envelop is fed into thecasing it will engage with the rear face of the guide-strip 13, and themoment that the envelop is released from the perpendicular rollers 25and 26 it will fall upon the partition 1? face downward, with its gummedflap edge facing the lower sealing-roll'ers 38 and 39, and as theenvelop is passed between these rollers the flap will be firmly sealedto the body of the envelop and the envelop will slide down the chute l3and out through the opening ll in the casing, ready to receive thestamp. The driving connection between the shafts of one roller of eachset insures all of the rollers operating simultaneously.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- 1. In an envelop moistoning and sealing machine, acasin g, a inoistening-roller adapted to receive the gummcd flap of theenvelop, feed-rollers arranged below the moisteningroller and in suchrelation thereto as to receive the body of the envelop while its flap isin engagement with the aforesaid moistening-roller, sealing-rollersbetween which the envelop in its moistened condition is to be passed,and a conducting device located between the guide-rollers and thescaling-rollers, as and for the purpose specified.

2. In an envelop moistening and sealing machine, a casing, amoistening-roller adapted to receive the gummed flap of the envelop,feed-rollers arranged below the moisteningroller and in such relationthereto as to receive the body of the envelop while its flap is inengagement with the aforesaid moistening-roller, sealing-rollers betweenwhich the envelop in its moistened condition is to be passed, aconducting device located between the guide-rollers and thesealing-rollers, and a guide partition located upon the said conductingdevice at a point between the space intervening the guide-rollers andthe sealingrollers, as and for the purpose specified.

3. In a machine for moistening and sealing envelops and like packages,the combination, with a casin g, a moistening-rollcr anda guiderollerlocated above the moistening-roller, the casing being provided with anopening adjacent to one end of the moistening-roller and at an angle tothe said roller, of feedrollers located at each side of the aforesaidslot, an inclined partition extending across the feed-rollers, andsealing-rollers located at the lower end of the aforesaid partition, asand for the purpose specified.

4c. In a machine for moistening and sealin g envelops and like packages,the combination, with a casing provided with a moisteningroller, and aguide-roller substantially in contact with the moistening-rollers, thetwo rollers being horizontally located and the casing being providedwith a vertical slot adjacent to one end of the moistening-roller, ofperpendicular guide-rollers located one at each side of the saidperpendicular slot, an inclined partition crossing the feed-rollers,sealing-rollers located at the lower end of the said partition, andmeans, substantially as described, for driving one of the rollers, and adriving connection between all of the rollers, whereby motion may besimultaneously imparted to all of the rollers upon operating one ofthem, as and for the purpose specified.

5. In a machine for moistening and sealing envelops, the combination,with a casing, a moistening-roller located in the said casing, aguide-roller adapted to turn in conjunction with the moistening-roller,the casing being provided with a slot at an angle to one end of themoistening-roller, guides exteriorly loeated on the casing, one leadingto the space between the moistening and guide rollers and mechanismoperated on by the said rollers, as and for the purpose specified.

ASAHEL W. EDDY. Witnesses:

O. R. APPELGATE, J. C. BEAL.

